Photo above: Santa Monica Mountains in Malibu Creek State Park. Right: Clouds above the mountains from Yerba Buena Road. Photos courtesy National Park Service.

Santa Monica Mountains Then

Chumash and Tongva Culture - Both used the area, reaching back ten thousand years, hunting in the mountains, fishing in the oceans, and using the woodlands for their crafts and food. The Chumash resided in the Santa Ynez Mountains to the Channel Islands; their name meaning bead maker or seashell people. Prior to the mission era, they lived in one hundred and fifty independent villages. First contact with Europeans, 1542, with the Cabrillo expedition. Spanish settlement in the area began in 1770. The Tongva migrated to Southern California from Nevada 3,500 years ago; they, like the Chumash, were confronted with European settlement when the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel was established in 1771. They numbered about five thousand strong at that time. The estimate of the Chumash population when the mission period began ranges from ten to fifteen thousand.

Movies - Yes, this will not be that surprising, but in 1927, Paramount Studios, who had been leasing the area since 1923, bought two thousand seven hundred acres of the Santa Monica Mountains to establish a western movie ranch at Rancho Las Virgenes. For twenty-five years it was at its zenith, then became reborn in 1953 when a permanent Western Town was built on a portion of the property for television show productions. The land changed hands a number of times, into the National Park Service in 1980, but that did not change its purpose. Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman was filmed there, and it's still used today, either by film companies or your tourist journey.

Santa Monica Beach - Santa Monica pier was estalished in 1909, but the beach, of course, has been there throughout the Chumash/Tongva, Spanish Mission, and modern periods of Santa Monica history. During the early part of the 20th century, a portion of Santa Monica Beach was reserved for African Americans, one of the few California beaches that allowed access. Today, the beach is a California State Park operated by the City of Santa Monica. How much has Santa Monica itself grown? In 1880 the population was 417; in 1890, 1,580. Today, 89,736. The coastal strip began to reap development in 1895 when Abbot Kinney bought the strip and opened Ocean Park. By 1909, the first pier, Santa Monica Pier, was under construction, and at one time, five piers graced the Santa Monica beach area. Only the Santa Monica Pier remains.

Photo above: View of the beach at Santa Monica and the concession area, 1890. Courtesy Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection via Wikipedia Commons. Below: Santa Monica Mountains in the distance from Santa Monica Beach. Source: National Park Service.

Santa Monica Mountains Now

The California State Parks have been around for awhile, with the National Park Service new in 1978, leaving such a variety of pursuits that it's hard to imagine. You can wander around that movie set, hike the five hundred miles of trails, go to beach, even step out of the National Recreation Area to seek the amusements of Santa Monica Pier. When you're talking trails, there are small loop trails at many locations, as well as the Backbone Trail, a sixty-five mile trail that follows the ridge of the Santa Monica Mountains. The National Park Service leads a guided hike of that trail from January to April in eight segments. Advance registration is required.

As we noted before, this is a park run by many entities, with jurisdiction over different areas. The National Park Service runs the areas of Arroyo Sequit, Cheeseboro and Palo Camado Canyons, Circle X Ranch, King Gillette Ranch, Paramount Ranch and Western Town, Peter Strauss Ranch, Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa, Rocky Oaks, Solstice Canyon, and the Zuma and Trancas Canyons.

There are eleven California State Parks within the National Recreation Area; Malibu Creek State Park, Leo Carrillo State Park, Point Dume State Reserve, Point Mugu State Park, R. H. Meyer Memorial State Beaches, Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook Malibu Lagoon State Beach, Topanga State Park, and Will Rogers State Historic Park.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority has authority over Charmlee Wilderness Park, Corral Canyon Park, Franklin Canyon Park, Los Angeles River Center and Gardens, Malibu Bluffs Open Space, Marvin Braude Mulholland Gateway Park, San Vicente Mountain Park, Temescal Gateway Park, and Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve.

Even the City of Los Angeles gets into the act with Griffith Park, Runyon Canyon Park, and Zuma Beach County Park.